# \*Why\* are there guidos? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 5, 2011, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214 "2011-04-05T00:32:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JerseyMarine2092](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8491ac/32.png) [@JerseyMarine2092](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyMarine2092)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/21 "2011-04-05T18:03:09Z")
Being from the Jersey Shore, God knows I’ve been wondering this my entire life. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/22 "2011-04-05T18:20:26Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > Guidos aren’t a new phenomenon, either. They were around in the 1980s, when I was in high school and college. The look was a bit different then (Chess King instead of Affliction/Tapout/Ed Hardy, Chevrolet Monte Carlos and Camaros instead of the BMW 3-series), but the major traits were all still there; bodybuilding, extreme machismo, quite loud and obnoxious, love of dance music, and so on. My Dad remembers Guidos from the _1950s_. Chess King? Please explain. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/23 "2011-04-05T19:30:24Z")
IMHO - Where I’m at, I see plenty of asian guidos, persian guidos, azerbaijani guidos, arab guidos, russian guidos, armenian guidos, etc. It really does seem to be a common style for over-testosteroned arrogant/ignorant young males. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/24 "2011-04-05T19:33:26Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > Chess King? Please explain. Clothing retailer, similar to the other brands mentioned. [Wiki.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_King) ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/25 "2011-04-06T14:38:37Z")
> [@Trom](#): > > The uber-Scandinavians in Minnesota are a bit more subtle, but they’re there. They tend to hang out in the live audience of A Prairie Home Companion. And, man, don’t run afoul of them. A bunch of us were walking around downtown Northfield, MN and one of my friends bumped into a guy (accidentally, honest!). We stopped and turned and just froze at the sight: six guys, Americans-of-Norwegian-Descent-to-the-max. Fleece vests over hockey jerseys, baggy cargo khakis, serviceable shoes. Our blood froze as they nailed us to our spot with their frank, candid eye-contact. All except the alpha-male of the group. He’d been looking at his shoes, and as he raised his clear-as-a-fjord gaze to our faces, we knew something was about to go down. “Uh, sorry. Probably our fault.” He turned his back to us. And his posse, sensing they’d scored a moral victory, did the same. They shuffled off, secure in their ethical superiority, as we just stood there for what felt like an hour. I have never felt so deflated. A tribe of Guidos would’ve thrown a punch, a gaggle of Bonos would’ve at least shoved us. But how do you save face against… an apology? None of us were ever quite the same. Nate started hanging out with factory guys, Lou tried to get his old band back together, and Benjy drifted off to somewhere in one of the Dakotas. And me? I’m the only one that can still tell the tale. Weekend nights at Josie’s, far end of the bar, to whoever’ll listen. ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/26 "2011-04-06T15:56:02Z")
Uff-da! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/27 "2011-04-06T16:33:29Z")
Bravo **digs**! ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/28 "2011-04-06T18:50:53Z")
> [@bucketybuck](#): > > I see the links msmith537 posted, but they just look like pictures from the 80’s, early 90’s. Is it as simple as that? And if so, is that a common look in places? They were taken last week! ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/29 "2011-04-06T19:15:03Z")
I wouldn’t say "rednecks"generally are this type of subculture; I tend to think of rednecks as flourishing around middle age. But the junior varsity version is something we called “kickers” back in high school: arrogant, wearing cowboy hats and boots, listening to godawful music (e.g., “Achy Breaky Heart”) and proud of their FFA animals. They’re definitely the Texas version of guidos in my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/30 "2011-04-06T19:17:14Z")
And I wonder where Glaswegian youth and English soccer hooligans fit into all this . . . ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/31 "2011-04-06T21:29:39Z")
Not being familiar with this “guido” term (and not watching Jersey Shore), I checked out the link from **Hermitian**. OMG, the hair, the orange overdone fake tans, Gaaaa! (I think there are three different links to pics of the same two douchebags on that first search page.) Nobody has answered the question, _why_ are there guidos? Why would anyone do that to himself? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/32 "2011-04-06T21:39:19Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Nobody has answered the question, _why_ are there guidos? Why would anyone do that to himself? > > 😉 That’s easy. They do it to get guidettes. That just brings us back full circle to your second question so the ultimate motivation is still a mystery. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/33 "2011-04-06T23:00:36Z")
> [@SirRay](#): > > IROC = Italian Retards Out Cruising > > Also, Guido Style car seating = Dudes in the Front seat, Chicks in the Back > > Yep, Guido style was definitely around in the 1980s, at least on Long Island - who else remembers the Guido room at the Malibu in Lido Beach… I lived on LI in the 80s, and yeah, there were plenty of Guidos. But [this](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://finemoviesonline.net/wp-content/images/travolta3.jpg&imgrefurl=http://finemoviesonline.net/mag/john-travolta&h=411&w=531&sz=74&tbnid=LcrjwzaLWHih-M:&tbnh=102&tbnw=132&prev=/search%3Fq%3Djohn%2Btravolta%2Bsaturday%2Bnight%2Bfever%2Bpictures%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=john+travolta+saturday+night+fever+pictures&usg=__KcbVi8FJv9c1V11TGIIxdUtYVGg=&sa=X&ei=VvCcTYrFKrS00QH3u9DjAg&ved=0CCUQ9QEwBQ) is even earlier than the 80s–I’m pretty sure that’s a Guido right there. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/34 "2011-04-06T23:21:36Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > I wouldn’t say "rednecks"generally are this type of subculture; I tend to think of rednecks as flourishing around middle age. But the junior varsity version is something we called “kickers” back in high school: arrogant, wearing cowboy hats and boots, listening to godawful music (e.g., “Achy Breaky Heart”) and proud of their FFA animals. They’re definitely the Texas version of guidos in my mind. Just FYI, you left a word off the “kickers.” The long form is “shit-kickers”, or at least it was growing up in SW Houston in the 80s and 90s. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/35 "2011-04-07T00:06:40Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > I lived on LI in the 80s, and yeah, there were plenty of Guidos. But [this](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://finemoviesonline.net/wp-content/images/travolta3.jpg&imgrefurl=http://finemoviesonline.net/mag/john-travolta&h=411&w=531&sz=74&tbnid=LcrjwzaLWHih-M:&tbnh=102&tbnw=132&prev=/search%3Fq%3Djohn%2Btravolta%2Bsaturday%2Bnight%2Bfever%2Bpictures%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=john+travolta+saturday+night+fever+pictures&usg=__KcbVi8FJv9c1V11TGIIxdUtYVGg=&sa=X&ei=VvCcTYrFKrS00QH3u9DjAg&ved=0CCUQ9QEwBQ) is even earlier than the 80s–I’m pretty sure that’s a Guido right there. Funny thing is, though, that the whole 70s Saturday Night Fever subculture was created out of whole cloth by some British guy trying to make deadline for an article in _Rolling Stone_. Or at least so I’ve heard . . . ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/36 "2011-04-07T01:29:59Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > [Some examples..](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.soulstrut.com/images/uploads/reviews/album-house-of-pain.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.soulstrut.com/index.php/reviews/indepth/House%2520Of%2520Pain/&usg=__W6mkyqOnzckZkytHeOJJcMXavtw=&h=455&w=455&sz=34&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=trINpU3GgFJ3gM:&tbnh=112&tbnw=112&ei=ZiSbTeiFFczUgAfx5OCeBw&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dhouse%2Bof%2Bpain%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1323%26bih%3D545%26gbv%3D2%26tbm%3Disch&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=110&vpy=100&dur=963&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=101&ty=132&oei=TSSbTYZejpO3B-_z1LYH&page=1&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0)[here..](http://www.rokpool.com/files/u1/odule10120777photo_1214148526DropkickMurphys.jpg)[and here..](http://www.showbiz.ie/images/stars/peterwolf-bono-1.jpg) I don’t really see anything in common among your examples, except that they’re all Irish people with varying degrees of fame. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/37 "2011-04-07T01:53:29Z")
Haven’t skinheads attached themselves to some Irish cultural stuff? Or maybe more specifically Aryan Nation members, what with the shamrock tattoos and all that. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/38 "2011-04-07T02:31:08Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Just FYI, you left a word off the “kickers.” The long form is “shit-kickers”, or at least it was growing up in SW Houston in the 80s and 90s. In the 70s in South Houston High, they were KIKKers. Because of 95.7 FM KIKK Country Radio, not affiliated with the KKK, btw … ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/39 "2011-04-07T16:12:24Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#): > > In the 70s in South Houston High, they were KIKKers. Because of 95.7 FM KIKK Country Radio, not affiliated with the KKK, btw … I remember KIKK- is it still there? I used to listen to Hudson and Harrigan when I was in high school in the 80s on the way to school. Didn’t even like country, but I thought they were funny. ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214/40 "2011-04-07T16:22:01Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > Haven’t skinheads attached themselves to some Irish cultural stuff? Or maybe more specifically Aryan Nation members, what with the shamrock tattoos and all that. Nonracist and antiracist skinheads tend to really go for the whole Paddy Punk thing. Dropkick Murphys, specifically, started out in the skinhead scene and sort of got more popular from there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-guidos/577214.md?page=3)